Friday, May 17, 2019

FMM - North Carolina!

We took a trip to North Carolina to visit our son Sam last week!  I don't like to announce to the world that we're going out of town until we're back, just in case someone is tempted to break in and rob me of my most precious items like my yarn, Buddy the Elf Funko Pops, or Lego minifig collection.  Why yes I'm an adult, why do you ask?

Anyway, this trip had been planned way before my herniated disc troubles - my parents were going to fly out a few days before we would arrive, and then we were going to drive there and overlap the visit with everyone at Sam's house (except for Allie) for a few days before they flew home, with us leaving a few days later.  Whew, did you follow that?  We went back on forth regarding going because I was in so much pain, but I was getting tired of staying at home and I figured I could be in pain there as well as here, so we made the trip.  Jeff had to do all the driving because I can't sit up enough to drive - my seat was reclined almost all the way for the trip.  Also there's that whole taking drugs that might impair my driving ability thing, too.  But he managed, and so did Paco, who rode in his crate in the back of the car.

A couple of long drives ago we realized that Paco wouldn't eat his kibble while we were traveling, so we resorted to getting him a McDonald's cheeseburger, which of course he happily ate.  From then on we get Happy Meals for all three of us because you get just enough junk food along with some apple slices and a bottle of water.  It didn't hurt that the toy in the Happy Meals happened to be Avengers figures:
Black Widow, Ant Man, War Machine, Black Panther, Hulk, and THOR (who looks about 20 years older than the actual Thor...)
Wate ware my toy?  All I got was dis cup of water.

We got to Sam's house on Sunday afternoon and immediately joined my parents in working on all of the projects Sam had planned for everyone.  I mostly supervised, but my mom, Sam, and I did go out one day to shop for his birthday present from us - new silverware to replace his rusting old Ikea silverware.  We went to Crate and Barrel which was so fun - not having one nearby, it's a huge treat to get to shop there in person instead of looking at everything online.  We also did some furniture shopping but Sam had the most luck before we arrived, when he and my parents went to Nadeau in Raleigh.  They came home with a carload of items - I'll do another post showing everything that changed in his house thanks to all of the decorators who visited and advised.
My mom and I.
My mom and I and chocolate chip ice cream push pops from Escazu Chocolates in Raleigh - these were so good!  My dad, Sam, and Jeff were there but escaped any pictures, apparently.

I came home with a very nice Mother's Day/early birthday present from Sam:
His iMac!  Plus a bluetooth keyboard and trackpad, which I'm getting used to - I like it.  The new computer's sleek look inspired me to clear my desk and now it feels very serene and calm here.

He bought the computer a while back to use it for photo editing but ended up not using it, so he gave it to me.  I am really impressed - I've been using a Mac Mini for a few years but this is lightning fast and has a lot more memory.  The only thing I need to figure out is how to change the desktop folder colors from blue to pink.  So far my attempts haven't worked, but there has to be a way to do that, right?

OK, enough sitting for me.  Have a great weekend!

18 comments:

  1. Congrats on getting a new computer how nice!

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  2. Happy belated Mother's Day! :) I'm glad you were still able to travel and see most of your family! That's exactly how my family has always handled visiting my brother, since he's always lived so far away (California now, and Texas before) - my parents and I will overlap for a few days, then each have a few days to spend with just him. It works out nicely that way.

    Does Paco ride in his crate because he's anxious in the car? Or more comfortable that way? We haven't figured out how to get Violet to not be completely crazy even on a short ride to the vet, and I'd love to take her with me when I visit my parents, so just curious.

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    1. Thanks, Anne! If we have room for the crate in the car (meaning, if we're not taking a bunch of stuff to leave at Sam's house), we put Paco in it. I don't think he sleeps or really rests, but he's quiet and he's not trying to come through the front seats to sit on my lap, or standing up on the back seat. We blocked it with a suitcase so he couldn't see us, and I think that helped to make him relax a little, anyway. Good luck with Violet - hope you find something that works for her.

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    2. That's exactly what Violet does - stands and jumps all over the backseat and tries to get up front with us, all while letting out her most high-pitched whines! I guess I was lucky that my first 3 dogs LOVED car rides, so this is all new to me. We'll have to give the crate a shot sometime, since she is generally pretty good in hers otherwise.

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    3. Hope it works for her! Along with having a nice pad in the crate, we also put Paco's favorite blanket inside and a chew toy, trying to make it feel familiar for him.

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  3. That sounds like you had a really nice trip. Is that a screened in porch that you and your mom are standing in? Wow, an iMac--that's a pretty nice Mother's Day present!!!

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    1. Yes, it's a screened in porch and it's so nice! I love sitting out there in the evening, listening to the wind rustle the trees behind Sam's house, while not being attacked by bugs.

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  4. So glad you managed this trip. Your mom is looking great! Ice cream push pops sound delicious and now I want one.

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    1. OMG these push pops were the best! I agree, Mom is looking great. :)

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  5. How wonderful that you were able to go and enjoy your family!!!!

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  6. what a great gift! Yeas it does make your desk area look serene!

    An odd question. Does Paco eat Apples? Baylee doesn't eat as much dog food as she needs to and my vet recently told me to let her eat pizza, so once in a while I give her a slice ;) . This is a big deal because she has been strictly a dog food dog, no table food.

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    1. Paco loves apples - he manages to beg a few slices from us every time we eat one. He lost a lot of weight a while back so we started feeding him canned dog food for dinner. He has gained a few pounds, so that's good, but it's much more expensive than pizza!

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  7. What a lovely picture of you and your mom. Sounds like an all-around great weekend!

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  8. I always get the happy meal and save all the toys for my grandkids. I'm sure their mom loves me for it lol.

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  9. Oooo, the new computer looks AWESOME! Yay!

    I am glad you still got to go. I can't wait to see all the decorating you helped Sam with!

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  10. awww what a nice gift. You had a great Mother's Day!

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